JAIME A. CURA
Chairman, CREBA Council of Leaders
CREBA Past National President, 1999-2001
CREBA National President, 2005

A technocrat by training, Jaime A. Cura first got involved in housing and urban development concerns through the Development Academy of the Philippines in the late 1973. Among his duties as DAP Academic fellow and later, Vice-President, Cura helped plan and organized the Human Settlements Program of the Academy as a strategic approach to national development planning in the Philippines. Through this program Cura obtained professional exposure to the concerns of community organization, mass housing, rural development, urban migration, infrastructure planning, and the like. It was also through this program that he first had the opportunity to work with architects, engineers, urban planners, developers, and the like.
This professional exposure paved the way for Cura further involvement in institution-building. The Philippine Council for Planning and Housing, the ASEAN Association for Planning and Housing, and, eventually, the Chamber of Real Estate and Builders Associations, Inc were the organizations where Cura became particularly active, either as founding secretary-general or, eventually, as president and lifetime member.

From the DAP, Cura became president and CEO of Trans-Asia Engineering (Phils) during the decade of the 80's. Trans-Asia was an active institutional member of CREBA and various other professional organizations. In time, Cura took on a concurrent role as executive director of the Council of Engineering Consultants of the Philippines and often represented the country in meetings and activities of the FIDIC, the international federation of consulting engineers.

In the early 90's Cura was conscripted into government service after a failed candidacy for the Philippine Senate in 1992. He had a three-year stint as concurrent Chairman of the Presidential Commission to Fight Poverty and Director-General of the Technology and Livelihood Center under the administration of Philippine President Fidel V. Ramos.

Cura also served in concurrent capacities as chairman, director, officer or CEO of various business concerns, such as the Philippine Journalists, Inc. (newspaper publishers), the Ocean Composite Yachts, Inc. (fiberglass boat manufacturers), Corporate & Career Consultants, Inc. (management consultants), Asia Psychological Services & Assessments, Inc. (psychological testing and measurement services), and Ayala Insurance, (insurance and financial services). Cura now manages a family-owned private school as his continuing service to the community where his residence and the school is located.

Cura has been an active Rotarian (past president and district officer) for 25 years and has sustained his active role as Trustee and/or officer in organizations devoted to social development and advocacy for good governance.
He may be reached at jim_cura@crebaland.com.ph.